Zebra eel and hermits?

[Jaco2420]

Hello everyone I just got a zebra eel for my mixed reef, I’m just wondering everyone’s experience with keeping this eel sp. with blue legs or similar crabs. Only people with eels please.

 

[Spare time]

They are compatible. I wouldnt worry. Zebra eels are the good doggos of the reef in my opinion

 

[Jaco2420]

They are compatible. I wouldnt worry. Zebra eels are the good doggos of the reef in my opinion

Thanks!

 

[lion king]

Zebra's are pebble tooth eels and they will eat crustaceans. It;s not in their nature not to eat shrimp and crabs. Cleaner shrimp can be the exception.

 

[Jaco2420]

Zebra's are pebble tooth eels and they will eat crustaceans. It;s not in their nature not to eat shrimp and crabs. Cleaner shrimp can be the exception.

So kinda like a 50/50 chance you think?

 

[lion king]

So kinda like a 50/50 chance you think?

You'll hear reports of cleaner shrimp living safely with eels, I've seen youtube vids of them with all kinds of eels. Some how none of my eels ever got the memo. Nothing is absolute, there are a few factors that may contribute, I really wouldn't concern myself with hermits, they are easy to replace, inexpensive, and at the very least may give your eel some entertainment. I would expect eventually they would all disappear. I wonder how long the cleaner shrimp really do coexist with the eels, miss feeding one day and all bets are off.

 

[Spare time]

So kinda like a 50/50 chance you think?

I've never seen one eat a cleaner but I guess with most things if they get too hungry then it could be tasty

 

[ca1ore]

I think all crustaceans are a potential meal for a pebble tooth. My large coral banded shrimp disappeared not long after the zebra arrived. Had a large spiny lobster that I thought was big enough to hold its own also go missing. Hermits are not all that long lived for me, though cannot say whether the cause was the eel or a large dusky wrasse.

 

[mtfish]

Snails and hermit crabs are safe in my tank. Regular crabs and shrimp can be on the list of things eaten. I still have pistol shrimp, but they hide well and the eel cannot get to them. I also have porcelain crabs that came in with the live rock, but some may have been eaten. I also think the size of tank and how much you feed the eel can be a factor. I feed my eel once or twice a week only. If this is a mixed reef, they can knock corals off that are not securely attached.